Arizona Humane Society partners with Sen. T.J. Shope on animal cruelty bill
The Arizona Humane Society is working with lawmakers and Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell to strengthen the state's animal cruelty laws with the introduction of a new bill.
The Humane Society said 2023 was a hard year for animal abuse cases. The group responded to 15,000 calls for service and opened nearly 10,000 animal abuse cases — a 21% increase from 2022, according to a news release from the organization.
“Arizona’s pets have been victims of a weak statewide animal cruelty law for far too long,” said Dr. Steven Hansen, president and CEO of the Arizona Humane Society said. “While some cities have passed ordinances to provide additional protections for pets, the time has come for the whole state of Arizona to stand against animal cruelty.”
Senate Bill 1047, sponsored by Sen. T.J. Shope, will define cruelty to companion animals as the failure to provide necessary medical attention, ensure safe shelter and provide protection during extreme weather conditions. This legislation will also define food and water that are fit for animal consumption.
“The pressing need to bolster laws against animal cruelty has become more evident in the face of cases involving abandonment, lack of essential food or water, and insufficient shelter during extreme weather conditions,” Shope said in a news release. “I am proud to stand alongside the Arizona Humane Society as we push for a better quality of life for all the pets in our state.”
The statewide bill will be a way for lawmakers to fill holes in current animal cruelty legislation. Tracey Miiller, director of field operations at the Humane Society, said that many pets in rural communities are left without protection under the law without an overarching ordinance.
"There's so many rural communities that need this type of bill because they don't have a county ordinance or city ordinance or anything at all relating to animal cruelty," Miller said. "It needs to be more specific for a lot of those outlying communities."
Humane Society sends abused dogs to California rescue group
In September, the Arizona Humane Society aided the Chandler Police Department in seizing 55 special needs dogs from the home of Sydney McKinley, who is also known as April McLaughlin. It recently gained legal custody of the remaining 13 dogs in the case.
The group united the last five of them with the rescue group the Animal Pad on Tuesday. Lauren Botticelli, the executive director of the California-based organization, said the dogs would continue to receive care for their individualized needs in San Diego foster homes.
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"We previously took eight dogs in over the past couple of months from this case, who are all now in foster care homes thriving in San Deigo. Some are adopted, so that's great," Botticelli said. "These guys today, three of them are coming back to our facility in San Deigo, where they await foster homes. ... And then two of the dogs that we're transporting today are going to a different rescue."
The five dogs — Cody, Xander, Maddie, Skylar and Billy — will now be able to live happy and safe lives with their new foster families, Botticelli said.
"You would imagine for what they've been through, they would probably have a lot of behavior issues and a lot of trauma," Botticelli said. "What we're seeing is just dogs that are ready to finally get to live life the way they deserve."
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona Humane Society seeks to stop animal cruelty with new law
